I'm a C# developer having worked with .Net since it was in beta. Before that I mainly worked in C and C++. I have been developing commercial software for more than 20 years. I also mess around with microprocessors, but that's just for fun. I live near Cambridge, England and work from home in my 'silicon shed'.

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When I was on holiday recently I read the book "Electrified Sheep" which amused me. But it mentioned the voltaic pile - an early kind of battery. So I decided that I should build one :-) I used some US coinage that was sitting in a drawer. I cleaned the coins by soaking them in coca-cola. Then dissolved some dishwasher salt in warm water to act as the electrolyte. I soaked small bits of kitchen towel in that solution and put them between the coins, like this:

To my amusement, this was enough to light a suitable LED. This is what I got on the voltmeter:

...somewhere around 2 volts. I'm wondering what I could run off it, umm ... interesting.